My mission is to help change the wedding industry because I believe we deserve better. As such, I adhere to a strict code of conduct in all I do as a live events professional and as a writer who covers the wedding industrial complex.
Editorial independence
My most valuable asset is the independence to publish stories and refer work without fear. In order to maintain that boundary, I enforce a strict wall between what I write and whom I refer and the activities that pay me money.
Here are the core guidelines in my code of conduct:
I don’t accept things of value from wedding vendors and venues. I made one exception early in my career when a vendor sent me a sample of her work that I’ve kept (a sprig of embroidered flowers). I no longer accept such gifts.
“Things of value” includes donations or gifts of money, food, or drinks. I also do not accept services or discounts that venues and vendors often offer me in exchange for promoting their work, especially if those services and discounts would only benefit me.
For example, if a venue offered me a space to host my birthday party at a discounted rate because I’m a wedding coordinator and consultant, I would decline this offer and if I booked the space, I would pay the full, regular rate.I don’t participate in affiliate programs. I previously participated in an affiliate program through a company called ShareASale. I left that program in 2021 and have removed all affiliate links from my website. I made $58.63 from my time in the program.
As a rule, I no longer participate in affiliate programs in an attempt to keep my referrals free of incentives that may skew who and what I recommend to my clients and coworkers. This includes any and all affiliate programs offered to me by venues, vendors, businesses that serve people getting married, business that serve wedding vendors, and wedding industry brands.
Please note that this does not mean I’m not available for collaborations with those entities, including collaborations that include a person or company paying me money to perform a certain action.
My boundary here is that such collaborations are transparent to my clients and readers. Examples include paid sponsorship of my monthly newsletter, paid sponsorship of the monthly newsletter I send on behalf of an organization I co-founded called Altared, and paid sponsorship of other projects (one example: the sponsorship I received for a season of my podcast).
I will clearly and loudly state the conditions of that work to my clients and readers, and I will not engage in partnerships that would compromise my values on who and what I recommend in the wedding industry.
If you are interested in exploring a collaboration with me, the best way to contact me about my work as a wedding coordinator, consultant, and writer is elisabeth@elisabethkramer.com and the best way to contact me about my work with Altared is altaredpdx@gmail.com.I don’t accept things of value from companies or from their PR firms. Period.
I don’t accept preconditions for stories I write.
I don’t allow the people I interview to review my work before I publish.
I use the Society of Professional Journalists’ code of ethics as a baseline for my professional conduct as a writer and referrer of wedding resources. This applies to everything I write, including stories on my website, stories I write for media outlets, and my book. I am a former member of the SPJ and graduate of the School of Journalism and Communication at the University of Oregon.
When I make a mistake, I promptly issue a correction that explains the error. These corrections will be clearly noted on the story, indicating the time of the change and the details of what changed.
All of the above also applies to my role as the editor of an industry newsletter for wedding vendors.
Referral list
I maintain a referral list on my website as a way to support the work of vendors whom I believe are working to make the wedding industry a more diverse, inclusive, accessible, sustainable, and equitable place.
I do this while remaining cognizant of and actively fighting against the racist history of referral lists in the wedding industry. This means that my referral list is a living document. I review and update it at least monthly, often weekly. Please refer to the section below titled “Feedback” to learn how you can recommend edits and additions to my referral list.
My clients are never required to work with anyone on my referral list, and I do not receive any financial benefit if my clients book someone who is included on my referral list (i.e. I do not receive a cut from another vendor’s booking). No one can buy their way onto my list, either with money or other items of value.
Photo usage
Every photo I use in my work is shared with the consent of the client and the photographer(s). Wherever possible, I link back to the photographer(s) and I cite who took the photo as well as other vendors featured in the photo(s). I do not share photos of children or minors unless the guardians of those children or minors have given me explicitly permission to share.
Professional conduct
The no. 1 goal in my work is to prioritize your safety by valuing and respecting your lived experience. Here are examples of how I do this.
Feedback
My work, like me, is imperfect. As such, I remain open to feedback and suggestions. Please visit this page to contact me.